J-B welder
Well-Known Member
Today on craigslist I picked up an older (pre-Breech Lock) Lee Challenger press and RCBS Uniflow powder measure with stand. At $75 for everything it wasn't exactly a steal, but I thought it was fair. The toggles on the press are still tight and I figure I'll just use it for bullet seating.
In the press was an older Lee 30-06 die. The seller said he got the items when he bought a bunch of tools from someone a year ago and he's "not into the whole gun thing," so he didn't know anything about the die (or the press or the powder measure, for that matter). I've poked around online and can't seem to find anything on this particular die. I'm wondering if it's serviceable and whether it's a neck die or full-length. The markings on it say "LEE - 30/06 - D1." There's a pressure relief hole just above the threads, which I think would indicate it's a full-length die. Do I have that right? Also, the de-capping rod is not threaded, but is adjusted by loosening a collet. You can see in the pics that the previous user rounded the corners of the collet, possibly indicating either that the collet didn't hold very well and they had to really torque on it to get it to stay in place when sizing brass, or they were a numbskull and used the wrong size wrench.
The locking nut for adjusting the die in the press doesn't have a set screw, but instead just has a rubber O-ring that provides some resistance to keep it from turning. It seems like it would be easy enough to drill a hole through a flat on the locking nut and tap it to insert a set screw if someone wanted to use the die and keep it in place better.
Anyway, this is really just out of curiosity. I don't load for 30-06 right now. I do have that caliber in the stable, but if and when I decide to load for it I'll probably buy a set of new dies.
Thanks for any info anyone can provide.
In the press was an older Lee 30-06 die. The seller said he got the items when he bought a bunch of tools from someone a year ago and he's "not into the whole gun thing," so he didn't know anything about the die (or the press or the powder measure, for that matter). I've poked around online and can't seem to find anything on this particular die. I'm wondering if it's serviceable and whether it's a neck die or full-length. The markings on it say "LEE - 30/06 - D1." There's a pressure relief hole just above the threads, which I think would indicate it's a full-length die. Do I have that right? Also, the de-capping rod is not threaded, but is adjusted by loosening a collet. You can see in the pics that the previous user rounded the corners of the collet, possibly indicating either that the collet didn't hold very well and they had to really torque on it to get it to stay in place when sizing brass, or they were a numbskull and used the wrong size wrench.
The locking nut for adjusting the die in the press doesn't have a set screw, but instead just has a rubber O-ring that provides some resistance to keep it from turning. It seems like it would be easy enough to drill a hole through a flat on the locking nut and tap it to insert a set screw if someone wanted to use the die and keep it in place better.
Anyway, this is really just out of curiosity. I don't load for 30-06 right now. I do have that caliber in the stable, but if and when I decide to load for it I'll probably buy a set of new dies.
Thanks for any info anyone can provide.
